Social Responsibilities Round Table of the American Library
Association

Resolution in Support of Omaha Library Workers

Adopted at 1996 Annual Conference

WHEREAS a class of about 100 library employees in the City of Omaha (over 75% of whom are female) were disadvantaged by a reclassification scheme implemented by the City of Omaha six years ago; and

WHEREAS in July 1990 the Omaha City Council implemented a change in the wage structure of its management, professional. and technical employees by dividing them into four groups, each of which received varying raises for the first year of the new contract. All the library employees--regardless of prior classification, were placed in the group receiving the lowest wage increases- That group contained 87 of the 103 women represented by the union, the Civilian Management Professional Technical Employees Council (CMPTEC); and

WHEREAS the other three groups all received higher wage increases. Those groups contained 171 of the 250 men in CMPTEC. There were no women in the group that received the highest raise. Plaintiffs' statistical analysis of this selection concluded that there was less than a 1 in 1,000 chance that the impact on women in the groupings would occur by chance alone; and

WHEREAS this group sued the City for sex discrimination in January of this year and lost on claims of disparate treatment (intentional discrimination) and disparate impact;

THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the American Library Association write an amicus curiae brief in support of the appeal to the 8th Circuit Court.